On our way to visit family in Maryland, we stopped to eat breakfast around 10 am. We had all been in the van for 6 hours already, and the kids were hungry and tired. As they were eating their breakfast sandwiches from Dunkin, we told them we were about to go right next door to Hershey Park.
They were too tired to fully comprehend at first, but then got super excited (or as excited as teens and tweens can get!)
As a large family with a wide spread of ages to account for, there are not that many activities where everyone can have a good time at the same time! It's a sad downside to our awesome big family life, but it is a reality. When we can find a place like Hershey Park that accommodates all the ages (from 15 down to 1) and is large enough to keep them entertained but small enough to visit in one day, we are all over that!!
Oh my heart, if you follow Sarah at Clover Lane, please read her latest blog post and join me in prayers for her. She has been an inspiration to moms everywhere, and we have been blogging friends since we both started ten years ago!
2)
Yesterday was just a day filled with bad news as we heard of three deaths that shook us to our core. The first was an alumni from our high school who was an officer on the Cape, killed while serving a warrant. The second was an Assistant Principal at a middle school who jumped off a bridge leaving behind a wife and two kids, and the third was the CYO director (and my oldest boys' boss) who died suddenly. Lord grant eternal peace to these souls, Amen.
3)
Story Land 2010
On a happier note, we are planning a summer trip to Story Land this year for the little ones to enjoy the magic that happens there. I'm happy to share this discount code for $6 off the ticket price for any of my readers who want to plan their visit as well! Maybe we will see ya there!
4)
I was sent a copy of Before I Was Me by Frank Fraser to read with my kiddos. It is a beautiful story of how much God created each of us to be very important, and always loved by God. The illustrations are so sweet and appealing as well, I would definitely recommend this book as a baby/toddler gift! So sweet.
That's EXACTLY how I picture our heavenly Father!
5)
We are off on April Break next week! We will be visiting family and friends and hopefully surprising the kids with a few fun things planned to make it feel like a "real vacation". I'm so excited to meet my two newest nieces and let the kids run around with their cousins. I'm also looking forward to finishing this book. The weather looks like it will be a lot warmer than what we're used too! I think we will be packing shorts and tshirts along with our winter wear. Yay!
6)
Speaking of packing, I still dread the chore, but it gets so much easier with bigger kids! I make one list writing out what they need to pack (toothbrush, jeans, sweatpants, pjs, etc) and the older four kids can just look at the list and pack themselves. It's wonderful. I do admit that I check it before I zip up the suitcase, but more often than not they are right on the money. The younger set is still my responsibility but nobody really cares what a 4 year old is wearing anyway. I also make a list of what we need to buy at the store before we go (snacks, water bottles, dog bones, etc) and a list of what we need to at home before we leave (clean bathrooms, give fish their weekly food, grab pillows and sound machines, blah blah blah). If it's not on the list, then it's sure to get missed, and I have nobody to blame but myself.
7)
How about something happy for a Friday!! I found this video of the four kids having a Cookie Face Race in 2011. They all look so sweet and innocent, and Eamon and Maggie totally crack me up. I don't want to sound like a nag, but man, please take photos and videos of your kids because when they get older, it is so fun to reminisce with them. You may not think they're acting super adorable today, but trust me in ten years, you will!
Have a wonderful, Spring-weather-filled weekend spent hugging your family and friends close!
I always think it is only going to be busy for a season, usually a literal sports season, and then slow down. But something else fills it's place, or I fill it's place with something else, and we're running ragged constantly. The past two days have been especially rough between social and volunteer events, a case of strep which involved two hours at Urgent Care, a couple big projects due for my kids, etc. It's overwhelming, really, parenting seven kids and working full-time so that you're trying to cram everything that needs to be done into the few hours at the end of each day. If I focus on how hard this journey can be, I will wind up crying in bed with a bag of chocolates, so instead I'm gonna focus on the positives!
First jobs are the best lesson makers, yes? It's like a little segment of a developing teenage brain gets blown wide open with all the street smarts entering in. My parents had a couple of homemade ice cream shops on the Cape and all six of us kids worked there. I was just 6 when the first one opened, and started off by filling napkins and spoons and wiping tables. I finally started serving customers at age 12 and was a manager at age 16. I learned a LOT about life from scooping ice cream, such as:
